Disclaimer: All recognizable Rizzoli & Isles characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners including, but not limited to Tess Gerritsen, Janet Tamaro and TNT. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this fan fiction story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No financial gain is associated with the publishing of this story. No copyright infringement is intended.

Author's Note: Like most of the fandom, I was particularly annoyed with the return of a certain character in the season premiere. I won't spoil it for those of you who haven't seen 4x01. This is my way of dealing with the episode's disappointments. Set after 4x01, but it is not necessary to have seen the episode to follow the plot. Also, I know many of you ask me to continue my stories. You've probably figured out by now that I am partial to one-shots. This will be another one-shot. –DKC

Curses

Frankie left Maura's house with a huge smile on his face due to Maura's help with his bike. Though made uncomfortable more than once, Frankie enjoyed spending time with his big sister and her best friend. He'd come to think of Maura as a sister as well. Once the younger Rizzoli had left, Jane and Maura resumed their beer drinking upstairs as Maura changed into her lounge pants and a tank top.

"Dammit!" Maura blurted as she searched through the drawers in her walk-in closet for her favorite lounge pants.

"A problem, Dr. Isles?" Jane smirked from her seat at the foot of Maura's bed.

"Oh, it's nothing. I forgot to wash them is all," Maura muttered as she located another pair and briefly slipped behind the door to change into them.

"What's with the cursing?" Jane asked.

"What are you talking about?" Maura peeked her head around the closet door as she pulled her shirt over her head.

"You've been doing it a lot. It's just…different."

"I have not," Maura denied Jane's accusation.

Jane thought about it for a moment, wondering if she should push the issue with her best friend. She certainly didn't want to get into a long drawn out conversation about the doctor's mood. She noticed Maura's bra being flung toward the sorting hampers from her perch on the bed. The door was open just enough that Jane could see one of Maura's naked shoulders as she turned her back to the door to reach for something.

"You're the one who called me a pain in the ass," Maura's statement caught Jane as she was trying to get more of a glimpse of her best friend.

"You were being a pain in the ass," Jane responded. "Besides, I curse all of the time. It doesn't matter what came out of my mouth. You repeated it. More than once."

Maura walked out of the closet in a pair of heather grey lounge pants and a light pink tank top. The tank top was tight and showed every one of Maura's curves. Jane wasn't oblivious to Maura's beauty. She was, however, embarrassed when she was caught ogling her friend.

"Do you want to stay upstairs?" Maura attempted to stifle a smirk. She saw the look on Jane's face when she exited the closet and she knew that look on Jane's face only served to make certain parts of her anatomy more pronounced.

"'Sup to you," Jane mumbled as she took a swig of her beer.

"Are you staying?" Maura inquired as she walked around to the side of the bed that was traditionally hers when Jane stayed over.

"I probably shouldn't drive," Jane didn't want to seem too eager to be spending the night with the doctor.

Maura nodded as she grabbed her beer and settled on the bed. Jane flopped back on the bed, not making eye contact with Maura.

"Maybe you are rubbing off on me," Maura said.

Forgetting that they were discussing cursing, Jane raised an eyebrow and looked back at her friend as best she could from her lying position.

"The cursing."

"Don't blame it all on me!" Jane rolled on her side to face the seated woman.

"It's much less awkward when you curse."

"You think it's awkward for you when you curse? Imagine what it's like for the rest of us who aren't used to you saying anything that isn't scientific or refined," Jane smirked.

Maura sighed and didn't say anything for a moment. Jane worried that the cursing was connected to the rut Maura had been in of late. She reached out her free hand, placing it on Maura's leg.

"Maur?" Jane's worry was speaking.

"You have to remember how I was raised. Etiquette was not only expected, it was required."

"Ah, so us lowly peasants know nothing about etiquette," Jane said dryly, attempting to hide her hurt pride.

"No!" Maura reached a hand out to Jane's. "I am not saying that. What I am saying is, I wasn't raised around cursing and I was taught that cursing was unbecoming of a lady."

"Nobody ever said I was lady-like," Jane muttered. "So, what's changed?"

"What do you mean?"

Jane turned her body slightly, released Maura's leg and grasped the hand that had been over her own.

"I have nothing against you cursing. In fact, I find it rather cute."

"Oh, great. You curse and people take you seriously, I curse and they think I'm cute," Maura rolled her eyes and took a drink of her beer, but never let go of Jane's hand.

"People take you even more seriously when you swear than when I do because I do it so frequently. You pick your spots. I didn't say everyone finds your swearing cute."

Maura looked at Jane for a moment and then became fascinated with imaginary lint on her duvet. Jane began gently rubbing the back of Maura's hand with her thumb.

"I used to feel guilty when I used certain words," Maura started. " I mean, when I used certain words even in the bedroom."

Jane's ears perked up at Maura's confession. As much as she hated to hear about Maura's exploits in bed with various men, she was extremely curious about what exactly Maura was like in bed.

"Does the distinguished Dr. Isles talk dirty in bed?" Jane joked, her heart rate noticeably picking up.

Maura threw a pillow at Jane's head and did not answer the detective's question. There was a slight blush on Maura's face as she finished her beer, placed the empty bottle on her nightstand and shifted slightly toward Jane. It was lost on neither woman that they were still holding hands.

"There's nothing wrong with it, you know," Jane finally said.

"Don't tell me the sexually reserved detective approves of dirty talk," Maura teased back.

Jane shrugged her shoulders and took a long draw of her own beer. She wasn't sure what she hoping to convey by her statement and she didn't have the slightest idea how to respond to Maura's teasing.

"I carry with me the lessons of boarding school, you carry with you the lessons of Catholic school. We aren't that different, you and I," Maura sensed Jane's sudden discomfort with the conversation.

"You're reserved about cursing, I'm reserved when it comes to talking about sex."

"And I don't seem to be rubbing off on you."

"Me being enthusiastic about talking about sex with you would be like if you…" Jane was cut off.

"Called someone a motherfucking cocksucker?" Jane choked on her drink as Maura cursed.

"Maura!" Jane choked. "Warn me before you do that!"

"Was that cute?" Maura quirked an eyebrow as her eyes bored into Jane's.

"Umm…" Jane coughed and tried desperately to maintain objectivity. Unfortunately, for Jane, her objectivity went out the window where Maura was concerned.

"It certainly wasn't PG," Jane deflected.

Maura gripped Jane's hand hard, reminding Jane that their hands were still connected. She gave Jane that look that always made Jane reveal whatever it was she was holding back or made her do whatever it was she didn't want to do.

"It wasn't cute," Jane said, noting the disappointment in Maura's eyes before seeing something else there that she couldn't quite put her finger on. "It was definitely something."

"Something, hmm?" Maura released Jane's hand entirely and both women immediately felt the loss.

"It's very alluring," Jane mumbled, breaking eye contact.

"So, if I were in the bedroom and I said 'Fuck me, now,' that wouldn't be considered cute, it would be considered alluring?" Maura knew the answer to her question; she merely wanted to hear Jane say it.

"Maur…" Jane whined. "Why are you asking me this?"

"You're the one who brought up cursing," Maura reminded her friend.

Jane sat there in silence for a few moments. She had not made eye contact with Maura since she'd revealed how alluring she found her cursing. She wanted to reach out and touch Maura, to ground them so that didn't lose some part of who they are to each other in this insane conversation.

Maura let out a perceptible sigh and Jane couldn't contain her thoughts for a second longer.

"It would be fucking intense, Maura!" Jane gushed. "God!"

Jane covered her face with her hands as she attempted to erase the words that had flown out of her mouth. She felt a soft hand touch her shoulder and she peeked out of her hands like a child.

"Just because I don't curse out loud regularly doesn't mean I am not thinking some of these things," Maura revealed. "I don't need to curse to have your undivided attention."

Jane dropped her hands from her face and gave Maura a confused look.

"When have you ever not been able to get a man's attention?" Jane wondered aloud.

"Who said I was talking about a man? I said your attention, did I not?"

"Maur… What are we even talking about?" Jane had dropped eye contact again, if only because she couldn't focus with Maura's hazel eyes burning into her.

"Cursing," Maura answered as if Jane had asked what color the sky was.

Jane looked up at Maura and saw that while Maura's answer was calm and matter-of-fact, her eyes were telling Jane another story entirely.

"Jesus, woman! Sometimes you confuse the hell out of me," Jane rolled her eyes.

"You're right," Maura said quietly.

"Huh?" Jane opened an eye and saw Maura with a serious look on her face.

"I have never had a problem getting a man's attention."

"You're nothing if not honest," Jane chuckled as she stood up to go to the en suite.

"Just yours," Maura blurted, catching Jane completely off guard.

Jane found words impossible to articulate. She simply stood there looking at Maura. And before what she was about to do could set in, she started walking around the bed to get to Maura. Maura stood, uncertain of what the look of determination on Jane's face meant. It didn't take long for Maura to know exactly what Jane was approaching her for. Jane's hands reached up, framing Maura's face.

"You always have my attention. Always," Jane insisted, her stare rendering Maura speechless.

"You… I… shit," Maura was dumbstruck.

"Don't do that," Jane nearly growled.

"Why not?" The look on Maura's face was a mixture of confusion and frustration.

"Because I'll have to do this…" Jane's lips pressed to Maura's and the doctor's hands grasped Jane's shoulders to keep her balance.

Jane's hand slipped around the back of Maura's neck pulling the smaller woman deeper into the kiss. As they broke the kiss for air, Maura dropped her hands to Jane's hips. It took her a moment to catch her breath after the surprising and passionate kiss.

"By alluring you meant sexy?" Maura smiled up at Jane as the detective dropped her hands to where Maura's were resting.

"Fucking sexy," Jane rasped, never tearing her eyes from Maura's.

"Fucking sexy," Maura hummed. "I like that."

Jane couldn't help but chuckle at how they had arrived here and how a conversation about Maura's recent cursing led to it. She was surprisingly calm at having just kissed her best friend. In fact, she was calm and content. Content was not something Jane was accustomed to when it came to her feelings for Maura. She was usually frustrated, stifled even.

"Jane?" Maura interrupted Jane's thoughts.

"Hmm?"

"Didn't you need to use the bathroom?"

"Oh, yes!" Jane released Maura and walked back around the foot of the bed toward the en suite.

As Jane walked into the bathroom and closed the door, Maura sat down on the bed, eventually lying back against the headboard. There was a smile on her face and a flush across her face. She touched her forefinger to her slightly swollen lips.

"Fuck," Maura mouthed, the sound below that of a whisper.

-FINIS-